This week, a generation brought up on the promises of Hollywood blockbusters will wake up disappointed. By now, we thought we’d be commuting to work in flying cars, heading out for lunch on a personalised hoverboards, and eating gourmet meals prepared by robots. When I’m having to tie my shoes up with my own hands this Wednesday, I’ll curse Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale for selling me a sham idea of the future.

For the confused out there, let me explain - the 21st of October 2015 is “Back to the Future” day, the date that Marty Mcfly and Doc Brown travel forward to in the second instalment of the famous film franchise. What they found there was a tech lover’s paradise, with a gadget and gizmo on hand to do even the most basic of household chores. Robots walks dogs and clear up litter from the streets. Keys are gone, with every door being unlocked at the touch of a finger. Clothes dry themselves automatically, and weather can be controlled and predicted to the minute, making getting caught in a sudden downpour a thing of the past. But most appealing to kids was the hoverboard, an ultra-futuristic skateboard that many of us were certain we’d have by now.

However, as this infographic by tech lovers Stay Sourced shows, there is a little light in the dark for those of us brought up on the technological dreams of the 80s. When you look a little closer, it becomes apparent that the film wasn’t so wrong about 2015 after all.

Wheras the film had “service robots” to carry out chores, we have drones – a service robot in all but name. Drones have become increasingly common over the past couple of years, with Amazon even planning to roll them out to deliver packages in an ultra-quick and ultra-efficient manner.

Even weather control, one of the more farfetched ideas the film conjured up, isn’t so far off from the reality we have in 2015. As the infographic states, “weather modification” experiments date back to the early 20th century. From these experiments we got cloud seeding, where substances are released into the atmosphere to stop precipitation. Whilst not used day to day, cloud seeding has been used at large events like the Olympics, where success relies on fair weather.

Not only that, the hoverboard that a generation still pine over isn’t so far away either. Hendo have led the way in hoverboard design, collaborating with Tony Hawk to streamline an admittedly clunky original design. Whilst they might not be on shelves just yet, those who can’t wait can invest in a “Swegway”. OK, so they might not be a board, and they might not hover, but they look pretty similar to the real thing, right?

The rest of the infographic shows that in fact, we’re not so far away from the future after all. Take a look below, and head over to the StaySourced.com site for some more details.

What "Back to the Future II" got Right and Wrong about 2015 ( Infographic )

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